1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to treadmills, and more specifically to a lifting mechanism and treadmill arrangement.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional treadmill, as shown in FIG. 1, is generally composed of a base frame 1, a treadbase 2 mounted pivotally on the base frame 1, a first motor drive (not shown) located on the treadbase 2 at a front side thereof and adapted to rotate a belt (not shown), a second motor drive 3, a screw rod 4 coupled to the front side of the treadbase 2 and driven by the second motor drive 3 to lift or lower the treadbase 2 so as to adjust the inclination of the treadbase 2.
The screw rod 4 has a bottom end threaded into an internally threaded barrel 5, which is fixedly located on the base frame 1 at an end thereof. When the second motor drive 3 is operated, the screw rod is 4 screwed into or out of the barrel 5, thereby lifting or lowering the treadbase 2. However, the treadmill is still defective structurally and includes disadvantages as follows:
1. Because the screw rod 4 and the barrel 5 are adapted to move oppositely in vertical direction, the second motor drive 3, the screw rod 4, and the barrel 5 must be located on the middle section of the treadmill to prevent from unbalance of lifting. This limitation confines the available installation space and orientation for the first motor drive.
2. In order to install the first motor drive in the limited space between the treadbase 2 and the second motor drive 3, the first motor drive must be provided with an expensive model of high capacity and small size.
3.Because the second motor drive 3 and the barrel 5 occupy much vertical installation space, the treadbase 2 cannot be set in a horizontal position. As shown in FIG. 1, the treadbase 2 is positioned with a front end thereof lifted and slopes downwardly backwards at an angle. Many consumers may not like to do exercise on an inclined treadbase.